Shaun Tait, the South Australian fast bowler who played in two Ashes Tests in 2005, has claimed that the England batsmen are vulnerable to the short ball and that the hosts will use that to their advantage this winter.

Andrew Strauss, Alastair Cook and Kevin Pietersen all fell with poorly timed pull shots in the opening tour match against the Australian Prime Minister's XI, beaten for either pace or bounce in the one-day match.

"I think there are some guys there who don't really play the short ball that well but they're prepared to have a go at it, so we exploited that today and it came off," said Tait, who took three wickets - Strauss's, the other opener, Marcus Trescothick's, and the captain, Andrew Flintoff's - to press his claims to the Australians' third fast-bowling slot behind Glenn McGrath and Brett Lee. "I think we got two or three wickets from the short ball. The Australian team can look at that and maybe exploit that."

Flintoff was cool about the defeat, saying that England would be "where we want to be" before the Tests begin. "We were outplayed on the day. They played a fantastic game of cricket. But I'm not going to get too despondent. We are slow starters and have been in other series. But we have two games next week and are looking to improve.

"There were a few positives. It was nice for me to get 10 overs under my belt, and Ashley Giles is bowling again. Strauss and [Paul] Collingwood played well for a period so we have to look to those things. I think over the next week or so we will be looking at the middle-order batting positions. After the New South Wales game we will know a bit more about where we are at."

The England captain also took encouragement from his fitness level. "The ankle is fine," he said. "I'm pleased with the way I bowled. It became a different pitch when the ball got old. A few runs wouldn't go amiss for me, though."

In contrast Cameron White, the captain of the Prime Minister's XI, believes England will be under more pressure after such a heavy defeat. The Victorian all-rounder also suggested that few batsmen in the world were capable of repelling Tait in his current form.

"At the start of the day that was one of the things we talked about, hopefully putting them on the back foot," White said. "If that helps the Australian team out in some way I think we've done our part.

"There are not too many people who play the short ball at your head at 150kph too well. If that's a weakness, well, it could be. I'm sure the Australian team will look at that footage at some stage in their preparations for the Ashes.

"I'm not sure how it [the defeat] will affect [England] but it might put them under a bit more pressure to perform in their tour games coming up."

Elsewhere in Australia the mudslinging continued when Shane Warne accused the England coach, Duncan Fletcher, of being "a bit of a stirrer".

The Australians had been unhappy about what they claimed was Fletcher's smiling reaction when their captain, Ricky Ponting, was run out during the series in the summer of 2005. Fletcher has also dismissed Australia's Champions Trophy victory as irrelevant to the series which begins in Brisbane on November 23.

"Duncan Fletcher is a bit of a stirrer," said Warne. "I suppose you can do that from a position of strength; when they were winning they could stir the pot. It will be interesting to see what attitude he comes out with this year. He seems to be a lot more in the background now. When they were losing, Fletcher was nowhere to be seen.

"He picks and chooses what he says and contradicts himself, especially over the Champions Trophy," Australia's leg-spinner added.

England's big issues

Returning players

This was a first chance to impress for those not chosen for the Champions Trophy. It was not altogether successful. Ashley Giles's bowling was wooden, right, and his batting survived a plumb lbw first ball. Geraint Jones took a sublime catch down the leg side before dropping the eventual century-maker, Phil Jaques, on 21. Monty Panesar bowled only three overs and Alastair Cook looked short of a gallop. For Marcus Trescothick it was business as usual in Australia as he wafted outside off stump in the opening over of the England innings.

Andrew Flintoff

Endured a trying first competitive day as captain in Australia, seeing the opposition rattle up 347 having been put in, then being bowled for a single. His new-ball bowling, however, was brisk. His captaincy was unobtrusive but he was let down by his bowlers. He will need better support if he is not to be drained by the job.

Marcus Trescothick

Appeared relaxed and keen for the contest to start. His batting was certainly back to its unpredictability and he was out attempting to force a ball from outside off stump and edging to second slip.

The new ball

Failed emphatically to swing for James Anderson, a specialist swing bowler, but later in the match Shaun Tait, for the Prime Minister's side, found reverse swing at about 95mph.

Spinners' bad spell

Panesar was restricted to three overs in two spells, having been hit once for six over mid-wicket. Giles struggled on his return. He appeared to be wary of hurting the hip that required surgery early in the year.

Wicketkeeping

Jones did little to enhance his claim to return to the side for the first Test. His catch to dismiss the opener Tim Paine in Flintoff's third over - an inside edge requiring a change of direction and one-handed take - was brilliant but crossed out by the simple chance that reprieved Jaques. His 13 runs neither helped nor hindered his case.